Rockin' All Over the World

Background

“Rockin' All Over the World”, backed with "The Wall", was the first single John Fogerty released in 1975 after signing with Asylum Records. The song was recorded at Wally Heider Recording in San Francisco and engineered by David Coffin. Fogerty plays all the instruments by himself. The 45 rpm single was released in September 1975. It peaked at #27 in the USA and #40 in Germany. The tune also opened the A-side of the John Fogerty album.

John Fogerty wrote this relentless three-chord rumble on a low-tuned Telecaster in his Albany studio (Key Route Boulevard).  In the beginning, there was only a phrase "I like it, I like it, I like it" which captures the mood where "something is just so wonderful that you're caught up in the excitement, feeling the urge to scream out loud". After a month or so, the chorus, melody and lyrics started to emerge gradually, and suddenly there was a title too.  (John Fogerty, Fortunate Son, 2015; interview with Fogerty on KSAN, San Francisco, October 18th, 1975). 

Collector's notes

The single was released with different cover sleeves in Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. The US version didn't have a cover sleeve. Furthermore, "Rockin' All Over the World" came out in Thailand on an EP containing three other songs from other artists (Peter Koers, Green River: The Illustrated Discography, 1999). 

The John Fogerty album is only available as an imported item in the USA.

The photo on the cover sleeve of the German and Spanish prints of the single was also used on the cover of the tour book and concert posters of the John Fogerty Long Road Home Tour in 2006. 

A promotional single "Rockin' All Over the World" (stereo) coupled with "Rockin' All Over the World" (mono) was released in the USA in 1975.

Trivia

Due to poor sales of the John Fogerty album, "Rockin' All Over the World" is better known as a cover Status Quo recorded in 1977, particularly in Britain. 

Live versions

The year 1986 saw the first John Fogerty concert tour after the demise of Creedence Clearwater. "Rockin' All Over the World" was the closing number of the shows. The world premiere took place in Memphis, Tennessee, on August 27th, 1986. 

"Rockin' All Over the World" has belonged to the highlights of the John Fogerty concerts after he returned to the venues on a regular basis in spring 1997. However, he erased the song from the setlist on the immediately followed  Blue Moon Swamp Tour except a couple of concerts in Sweden in November 1997. Instead, he saved it for the Premonition Tour of the following year when he performed it on each leg of the circuit.

The song appears on each three concert DVDs he has released: Premonition (1998), The Long Road Home (2006) and Comin' Down the Road (2009).

John Fogerty has played the song live on US TV only once: on Tonight Show with Jay Leno on June 7th 2006. Next summer, British viewers enjoyed a live version of "Rockin'" while the BBC aired his concert at Glastonbury Festival.

Extraordinary live versions of the song include a rendition Fogerty performed with the Il Novecento Symphony Orchestra during the series of the Night of Proms concerts in Antwerp, Belgium, in autumn 2010. It was broadcast on TV in several European countries.

Fogerty also played the song as a duet with Bruce Springsteen in the concert at Hyde Park, London, UK, on July 14th 2012.   

Critical reception

"--- a solid choice as the album's first single: but it is little more than the formulaic CCR sound with the title repeated over and over, like a chant." -Dave Marsh, The Morning Record, September 18th, 1975. 

"But the best songwriting is on the fast side-openers--"Rockin' All Over the World" and "Almost Saturday Night," neither of which could be called an illumination. This is what happens when rock devolves from a calling into an idea--you can't even be absolutely certain it's him rather than you, but you know he'll never get away with it twice. B" -Robert Christgau, Consumer Guide

"This would have been a good title song, but John Fogerty is fine, if that's what he wanted! Fogerty's voice is back to his perfect raspiness. The high guitar notes are just restrained enough not to be screechy (which I hate!), and the piano in the middle is a nice touch. I like it, I like it, I la-la-like it!" -Matt Loewen

"A strong opener to this wonderful album. The guitar licks fill in nicely behind John's raspy delivery. The piano solo adds a nice change of pace. Bruce Springsteen has covered this version as several bootlegs will testify. If its good enough for the Bruce Man then it must be a very lalalalikeable song." -Glenn J. Wiener

Fans' views

"Real rock'n roll, one of JF's best songs, reelin' and rockin'. Get crazy at this tune."

"Despite the poor studio sound engineering this tune catches the true soul of R&R."

"Biisi on kuin vanha veturi, jonka hoyrykattilasta eivat 30 vuoden aikana ole paineet vahentyneet."

"Can't get the tune out of my head -- great rockin' song. When John sang this at a concert in Houston, every time he got to the I like it, I like it, I li-li-like it part, he turned and looked at me (or someone very near me, but later he spoke to me from the stage)... so as he sang the "li-li-like it part, I sang it with him."

"Underrated Fogerty-song. John should have had the credits for this song right from the start."

"It has grown up bigger than itself. Fogerty´s voice is at his best."

Legacy

"Rockin' All Over the World" was voted as the best John Fogerty song of his solo career in a survey held by the John Fogerty Swamp Internet Mailing List in 2005.

In a similar survey covering the entire catalogue of John Fogerty (including Creedence Clearwater), "Rockin' All Over the World" made #10 in 2014.

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